Kroměříž is where Czech parliamentary history briefly came to rest. In 1848, when revolution shook the Habsburg lands, the Austrian constituent assembly moved here from Vienna for safety, and the archbishop's castle housed a group of delegates who tried to write a liberal constitution before the emperor dissolved them. That fact tends to surprise people who come for the gardens, but it fits the place: a small town with an unusually grand residence, built for the bishops of Olomouc.
The castle itself is a large Baroque palace, reconstructed after a fire in the seventeenth century, with rich interiors, a library of rare books and a music archive. Its art gallery contains an important collection that includes Titian's late masterpiece The Flaying of Marsyas, a fierce, dark painting that people rarely expect to find in a Moravian provincial town. Next to the castle lies a landscaped park by the Morava, while the formal Flower Garden lies a little to the north, and together they form the listed ensemble.
The roads in are good for an unhurried day. They cross the Haná plain, one of the most productive farming regions in the Czech lands, and they are lined with fruit trees and fields of grain. Corners are gentle, surfaces mostly good, and you meet the usual Czech mix of tractors and local drivers. The ride from Lednice and Valtice crosses wine country and so gives a nice contrast between the vineyards in the south and the farmland here.
Kroměříž is a proper town of nearly thirty thousand, so fuel and meals present no difficulty. The square is lively, there are cafés where you can sit with a coffee and a slice of cake, and local restaurants serve hearty Moravian dishes. The Haná region is also known for its cheese, which has a strong smell and a loyal following, though it is not for everyone.
Visit in late spring or early autumn if you can, when the parks are at their best and the town is calm. Allow at least a couple of hours, because the interiors reward patience and the park is a fine place to wander once you have looked at the paintings.